Liquid-jacketed aviator&#39;s garment



Jan. 7, 1941. M..R. H OLSTE- LIQUID-JACKETED AVIATOR'S GARMENT Filed 001;. 6,- 1937 Patented Jan. 7, 194 1 6 Claims.

, changes in speed of motion and direction of motion.

It is a known fact that in aviation, especially in high altitudes, when the machine makes a 15 sudden downward or nose dive and its downward speed is suddenly checked, the blood in theaviators body iscaused, partly by gravity and partly by centrifugal force, to rush from the head or upper portion of the body into the legs and 20 feet or the lower portion of the body, thereby producing a dizziness frequently approaching and sometimes causing unconsciousness.

The present invention has as an important ob- OFFICE RElStUED MAY 261942 ject, the provision of a method whereby the above 25 noted adverse effects produced by the tendency of blood within the human body to rush toward one end or the other of the body under rapidly 85 in addition to the main or torso portion, body and leg portions and usually also arm portions; and the garment is made up'of flexible inner and outer wall forming shells spaced to form attenuatedor thin chambers that contain water or other liquid that is free for-circulation therein. This improved garment is preferably designed for the use of an aviator or'otherpersons subject to conditions similar to those described and is illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

- wise slit or formed with longitudinal openings Broadly stated the method of the present in- 4 vention consists in-v confining a portionof the human body. and preferably a major portion 'of M the body, inclusive of legs and torso, within a body of free moving liquid that is heavier than air, and which .will, under changing conditions of motion. tend to rush in the same direction'as thebloodwithinthehumanbodyenclosedthcrein; thereby producing unequal pressure against 'ing a: projecting ilange'll.

the exterior of the body, which will be greatest on those portions of the body wherein blood pressure is greatest. Ingsuch an arrangement the tendency of the blood-withimthe bodyt'o rush away from one end of the body and to the other 5 end thereof under changing direction or speed of motion will be greaty counteracted by increased external pressure to those portions of the body wherein internal blood pressure is increased.

Referring to the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective with some parts broken away and some parts illustrating the improved garment designed for the purpose stated and seating on the seat and within a frame of fuselage of an airplane;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary section taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1..

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Of the parts of fuselage, it is desirable, for the purposes of this case, particularly to note the seat 4 and the fuselage frame 5 which latter, at its upper portions, is provided above the back of the seat 4, with a crossbar thatnis formed with an intermediate approximately semi-circufar yoke-,ilke portion I.

The improved garment here illustrated, in its general outlines,- resembles very much what is known as a workmans coveralls orcomplete overall. This garment is formed with the body or torso portion, withleg and feet portions and collapsible and may be of elastic material, but the outer shell should be quite inelastic, al-

though very fiexible. The breast or body portion'of the garment in the front is slit I! as shown in Fig. 3, the adjoining edgesof the slit being liquid tight but having fasteners II which are preferably of the well-known zipper type. The leg portions of the garment in front are like-'.

shown in- Fig. 3 and are provided with fasteners such as zippers l2. Also the lower portions of the arms of the garment are likewise slit and provided with fasteners such as zippers l3.

At the upper edge of the garment, the inner and outer shells 8 and 9 are brought together cured to a similarly formed metallic yoke ll hav- The yoke i6 is adapted to be inserted freely into the bowl of the cross bar, with the flange l1 resting on said cross bar so as to positively hold the upper portion of the garment against downwardly slipping movement on the wearer. In

this manner the fluid weighted garment is largely supported independent of the wearer by the frame work of the aeroplane, and this is highly important particularly when making extremely rapid reversals in direction of motion. In case of flying upside down, the yoke 16 will strike the bar 6-1 and act as a stop. The space between the inner and outer walls 8 and 9. respectively is, as previously indicated, filled with a free moving liquid that is heavier than air and which may be assumed to be water 1 For the purpose offilling the fluid space and venting the said space while filling, the garment is provided in its outer wall with a pair of stems 8a that are normally closed by screw threaded caps 8b.

In this garment or apparatus it is evident that the pressure of the liquid in the double walled Y garment will normally be downward andithat this pressure will collapse theinner walls and keep the same pressed against the legs and other parts of the body.-- It is also evident that under sudden retarding of the downward movement,-

there will be a rush or flow of the liquid to thelower portions of the garment and that this will increase the pressure on the leg and other lower portions' of the body, to oft-set the tendency of the increase in blood pressure in the same direc-' of might be omitted. The openings on the arms give the operator a chance to get his hands free from the garment in case they are needed for some work that can not be performed with the mitten portion of the arms on the hands. Preferably the hand receiving portions of the garment are formed, like mittens with a separate thumb receiving portion so as to permit free use of the operators hands for manipulation of control and the zipper fasteners l2 and I3.

What I claim is:

1." In an aeroplane, a body enclosing garment having flexible outer and inner shells, the outer shell being inelastic and the inner shell being inwardly collapsible, said shells being spaced to form an intervening narrow chamber, and a liq-- uid in said chamber capable of free circulation therein, and means for supporting the liquid filled garment from the aeroplane structure so as to relieve a wearer 'of the weight thereof.

2. The method of ctr-setting the adverse effects of unequalized blood pressurein different portionsof the human body, resulting from rapidly changing conditionsof motion, which consists in enclosing a major portion of the body within a body of free moving liquid that is subject to the same changing conditions of motion as the body blood.

3. The method of oil' setting the adverse efblood pressure changes in corresponding portions of the human body. a

4. The method of ofi-setting the adverseef fects of unequalized blood pressure in different portions of the human body, resulting from rapidly changing conditions of motion, which consists in enclosing a major portion of the body within a body of free moving liquid that issubject tothe same changing conditions of motion as the bodyblood, and will subject diiierent enclosed portions of the body to external pressure changes in the same direction as and at an approximately predetermined ratio'to blood pressure changes in corresponding portions of the human body. a

5. The method of off-setting the adverse effects on the human body of unequalized pressure in different portions of the body, resulting from rapidly changing conditions of motion, which consists in enclosing a major portion of the human body within a' surrounding body of free moving liquid having a specific gravity approximating that of the blood within the human body, and subjecting the surrounding liquid to the same changing conditions as the human body.

6. The method of off-setting adverse eilfects on the human body caused by unequalized blood pressure in different portions of the body,'under rapidly changing conditions of motion, which consists in enclosing a major portion of the body, including the legs and. torso thereof, within a body of free moving liquid that is subject to the same changing conditions of motion as that of the body blood, whereby when blood tends'to rush to one extreme portion or the other of the body, under rapidly changing conditions of motion, the surrounding body of fluid will also tend to rush in the same direction as that of the blood, so that the pressure exerted on the human 

